Since the advent of the powered wheel, man has searched for means to enhance the traction of the wheel with the surface upon which it operates. Early on, the wide steel driving wheels of steam powered traction machinery were equipped with massive steel lugs, which bit into the earth and gave the wheel the traction required to pull a number of breaking or turning plows through the earth. The wide wheels were necessary to provide the area required and support the tractor against sinking into the earth. The lugs provided the grip in the soil required to pull the plows.
The coming of the horseless carriage created an entirely new set of problems, as it was nothing more than a motorized adaptation of a horse-drawn vehicle, having free-turning wheels, which were meant to be pulled across the earth, rather than propelled by the powered rotation of the wheels. It was soon discovered that the steel band, or tire, that encircled the wooden wheel rims, was only suitable for use on hard-packed and dry surfaces. From this discovery, there evolved the wider solid rubber and subsequently the pneumatic tire.
Since the evolution of the pneumatic tire, great effort has been dedicated in the search for means to improve the traction of the driving wheels of all manner of vehicles upon the surface and under the conditions which they must operate. Water, mud, and snow are three of the most difficult conditions to address with a modern vehicle tire. Each of these conditions requires a specific tire tread suited either to “channelize” the water away from the tire or grip the soft or slippery surface and either bring more material under the tread area or compact the material to provide a suitably stable driving surface. These conditions however, pale by comparison with the problems encountered when operating a wheeled vehicle on an ice covered surface.
No amount of tread, ribs, bars, and/or other such means are effective upon a surface of solid ice. While time-honored detachable tire chains or cleats provide a measure of traction under these conditions, their use has never been popular due to the difficulty of installation/removal and the bone-shaking ride which they impart to a vehicle employing them.
In an attempt to solve these problems, the conventional “studded tire,” which comprises a tread area which includes a number of hard stud-like projections which extend a short distance beyond the face of the tread to slightly penetrate the surface of the ice and thereby provide a limited mount of traction between tire and iced roadway, was developed. However, a studded tire with improved ice traction over conventional studded tires would be desirable.